HES
Energy Systems, the leading Fuel Cell Systems developer from
Singapore has formed an Alliance with three French Clean Energy and
Aerospace Tech companies. Named FLY-HY, the group’s mission is to begin
addressing the global market as a unified value chain, ranging from
hydrogen refueling systems to energy storage and power conversion, and
cooperate with leading designers of electric aircraft.

Singaporean Energy Tech company HES Energy Systems powers French air-droppable drone by Airborne Concept using a 10h hydrogen on demand fuel cell system (Photo: Business Wire)

The FLY-HY alliance will officially make its debut at the 2018 Singapore
Airshow at H3
Dynamics (booth C18), HES’ parent company.

HES
Energy Systems develops small-scale battery alternatives based on
its special breed of ultra-light hydrogen fuel cell systems capable of
storing energy at over 700Wh/kg, 3 to 4 times the electrical energy per
weight of lithium batteries. “The hydrogen molecule is the lightest
energy carrier in the universe. Meanwhile most of today’s electric
aircraft research has been focused on work-arounds using much heavier
lithium batteries. We see a clear opportunity to contribute to the
exciting world of electric flight” said Taras Wankewycz, Founder & CEO
of HES and parent company H3 Dynamics.

Thinking big yet starting small, HES
started out increasing the flight endurance of small electric powered
unmanned aircraft (UAVs) or drones, using its special lightweight fuel
cell and hydrogen storage technology. The company has been working
closely with numerous tier-one electric-UAV manufacturers and believes a
scaled-up version of its products could also improve the flight range
for personal mobility aerial vehicles as well as electric-powered
passenger aircraft.

After operating for some time locally in France, H3 Dynamics decided to
combine its “Made in Singapore” aerospace-grade hydrogen fuel cell
capability with complementary “Made in France” high tech solutions,
including novel electric UAV platforms (Toulouse-based Airborne
Concept, backed by Airbus), hydrogen gas storage devices (AD-VENTA),
and innovative hydrogen generating electrolyzers (ERGOSUP,
backed by Air
Liquide) which is now adapting its innovative systems to refueling
small HES-powered hydrogen drones.

HES Energy Systems and ERGOSUP are also working in partnership with DELAIR,
another French drone tech company, on project HYDRONE, a laureate of a
French National Call for Projects “Territoires Hydrogène”. The national
project aims to deploy five hydrogen drone and refueling systems capable
of covering the entire French territory during 2018 and 2019.

This initiative also follows the launch of the Hydrogen
Council in 2017, involving a number of high-profile companies
including Air Liquide, Alstom, AngloAmerican, BMW Group, Daimler, Engie,
Honda, Hyundai, Shell, Linde, Total, Toyota, Audi, General Motors,
Statoil & Iwatani, working together to promote a new hydrogen economy
and society.

HES Energy Systems is a global leader in developing ultralight fuel
cells and hydrogen energy storage systems for aerospace and other weight
sensitive applications. Hired by tier-one UAV manufacturers, and leading
aerospace institutes around the world, the company uses a variety of
hydrogen storage approaches, including gaseous compressed, chemical
hydrides and reforming. HES was acquired in 2015 by H3 Dynamics Group,
which is developing off-grid field robotics and AI-enabled data services.

ERGOSUP has developed an innovative hydrogen production process based on
zinc electrochemistry. Its first product is a 350 bar hydrogen generator
supplying 1 to 5 kg of hydrogen per day. ERGOSUP is planning to launch a
simple and cost competitive H2 generator capable of filling
up “plug and play” composite cylinders, allowing hydrogen to be supplied
for a single drone or a fleet. The company is backed by ALIAD (Air
Liquide Venture Capital), DEMETER PARTNERS, GO CAPITAL and ARKEA Capital
Investment.

Airborne Concept is based in Toulouse and specializes in the design,
development and construction of innovative drones. Two patented UAVs,
the world's first air-droppable drone and a VTOL are the pride of the
Airborne Concept teams, made up of former flight crew members from the
French Air Force and engineers graduated from aeronautical engineering
schools. Airborne Concept is developing air-droppable drones for Special
Forces and its Up-Start drone for parcel delivery. The company has also
developed an ADS-B transponder for drones, an essential link in the
identification of drones in the airspace.

AD-VENTA specializes in on-board gaseous hydrogen systems (H2 Pressure
and Flow Rate Regulation). With in-house factory design and realization,
the compact, safe and accurate turnkey solutions proposed by AD-VENTA
are based on a large patent portfolio and expertise in control of high
pressure compressed gases. Its markets include automotive, light
mobility, aerospace and naval applications. Aerial, Ground, Surface and
Underwater Unmanned Vehicles powered with hydrogen fuel cells are its
short-term development targets.